6.  The applicant was born in 1987 and currently lives in Skierniewice.
7.  On 5 January 2007 the applicant was arrested on suspicion of robbery. He was subsequently charged with three counts of similar offences. On 7 January 2007 the Warsaw District Court remanded the applicant in custody.
8.  On an unspecified later date the applicant was additionally charged with the sexual abuse of a minor and with having recorded a pornographic image of the minor (Article 200 § 1 of the Criminal Code).
9.  On 21 December 2007 the prosecution filed a bill of indictment with the Warsaw District Court comprising all the above charges. The courts gave a number of subsequent decisions prolonging the applicant’s detention on remand.
10.  On 14 August 2008 the Warsaw-Mokotów District Court convicted the applicant as charged and sentenced him to seven years’ imprisonment. It banned the applicant from any position, profession or activity related to the taking care of minors for a period of fifteen years. The court further imposed a five‑year order preventing the applicant from frequenting any places or institutions connected with the care or education of minors.
11.  The applicant appealed. On 6 May 2009 the Warsaw Regional Court upheld the first-instance judgment.
12.  On 26 August 2009 the applicant’s legal-aid counsel informed the Regional Court that he had found no grounds to lodge a cassation appeal in the case.
13.  On 24 August 2007 the applicant was admitted to the Warsaw‑Mokotów Detention Centre in order to undergo a psychiatric examination. He remained there until 24 October 2007.
14.  Between 31 August and 12 October 2007 the applicant was placed in the psychiatric wing of the Warsaw-Mokotów Remand Centre.
15.  According to the applicant, between 7 and 10 September 2007 (Friday afternoon until Monday morning) he was abused by two of his fellow inmates (T.G. and P.O.). They attempted to rape him with a broom stick and unsuccessfully ordered a third inmate (J.C.) to insert his penis in the applicant’s mouth. The inmates poured cold water over the applicant who was lying in bed, spat on him and scrubbed his head with a toilet brush. They further abused him verbally and threatened to kill him.
16.  The applicant attempted to alert the staff of the Remand Centre about the incident, but to no avail. In the morning of 10 September 2007 (Monday) he reported the incident to a doctor and was quickly moved to a different cell.
17.  On 12 September 2007 the Governor of the Warsaw-Mokotów Remand Centre ordered an inquiry into the incident. On 20 September 2007 a report was presented to the Governor. The inquiry established that between 7 and 9 September 2007 the applicant had been ill-treated by two of his fellow inmates (T.G. and P.O.). The inquiry found that they had held his arms and had urged another inmate J.C. (suffering from a mental disability) to strip off in front of the applicant. The applicant had been threatened with sexual abuse. Furthermore, T.G. and P.O. had spat on the applicant, poured water over him, hit him with a broom stick and forced J.C. to touch his head with a toilet brush. They had threatened to kill the applicant if he reported the incident.
18.  The applicant was held in cell no. 6 which was equipped with a CCTV camera and was located opposite the nurses’ room.
19.  As regards the causes of the incident, the inquiry established that the fellow inmates had probably learnt that the applicant had been suspected of the sexual abuse of a minor. Furthermore, it was established that the applicant had proposed a sexual act to inmate T.G. in exchange for food, had attempted to touch his genitals at night and to touch his bottom in the shower room. The applicant denied this.
20.  The inquiry found no shortcomings on the part of the prison guards and medical staff. Furthermore, it was established that the applicant had not reported the abuse immediately after it had occurred. Once he had reported the incident, the prison staff had taken swift action.
21.  On 12 September 2007 the applicant was seen by a doctor who established the presence of yellow-brown marks subsequent to haematomas on his legs. They caused impairment of the applicant’s health lasting not longer than seven days.
22.  The inquiry concluded that the applicant had been subjected to ill‑treatment. However, the ill-treatment had not been of a significant degree and had been mostly of a psychological nature. The Governor of the Remand Centre imposed on P.O. a disciplinary penalty of 1 month ban on shopping in a remand centre shop. He imposed on T.G. a disciplinary penalty of a 3 month ban on receiving food parcels.
23.  On 10 September 2007 the applicant filed a criminal complaint with the Warsaw-Mokotów District Prosecution Office, alleging that he had been ill-treated by fellow inmates.
24.  On 28 September 2007, following the conclusions of the internal inquiry, the Governor of the Remand Centre notified the same Prosecution Office that an offence of ill-treatment had been committed.
25.  On 1 October 2007 the Warsaw‑Mokotów District Prosecutor transferred the case for inquiry to the Warsaw II District Police Station (case no. 1 Ds 907/07/V). On 31 October 2007 the police opened an inquiry into the alleged ill-treatment of a person deprived of liberty (Article 247 § 1 of the Criminal Code). The applicant was not notified about the opening of the inquiry. On 20 January 2008 he complained to a superior prosecutor about this fact. On 11 February 2008 the Warsaw Regional Prosecutor acknowledged in a decision that the applicant had not been notified about any decision taken by the District Prosecutor in respect of his criminal complaint filed on 10 September 2007.
26.  On 24 December 2007 the Warsaw‑Mokotów District Junior Prosecutor (asesor prokuratury rejonowej) decided to open an investigation into the allegation of the applicant’s ill-treatment and sexual abuse (Articles 207 § 1 and 197 § 2 of the Criminal Code respectively) in the framework of the original investigation. He transferred the case to the Warsaw II District Police Station for further investigation and notified the applicant thereof.
27.  On 21 March 2008 the police interviewed D.D., a prison guard who was on duty on 9 September 2007. He stated that no prisoner from cell no. 6 had complained to him about ill-treatment and that he had not noticed anything on the CCTV monitoring.
28.  A.S., who was the applicant’s fellow inmate at the material time, was interviewed by the police on 27 March 2008. He stated that T.G., P.O. and J.C. had ill-treated the applicant. They had held the applicant and J.C. had moved his penis near the applicant’s head. According to A.S., P.O. had also tried to rape the applicant with a broom stick.
29.  T.G. and P.O. were interviewed by the police on 27 and 28 March 2008 respectively. They stated that they had teased the applicant because he had not washed himself, had funny ears and had been making indecent proposals to T.G. They denied that they had ill-treated the applicant.
30.  On 28 March 2008 the Warsaw II District Police Station discontinued the investigation into the allegation of physical and psychological ill-treatment of the applicant who had been deprived of liberty (Article 247 § 1 of the CC). It found that there was insufficient evidence to justify the suspicion that a criminal offence had been committed (brak danych dostatecznie uzasadniających podejrzenie popełnienia czynu zabronionego). The reasons for the discontinuation read as follows:
“In the course of the investigation carried out in the above case concerning an offence specified in article 247 § 1 CC witnesses to the event were heard, namely A.S. and the employees of the Remand Centre in respect of the events alleged by M.C. [the applicant]. P.O. and T.G. were also heard as witnesses and they commented on the issues alleged by M.C. [the applicant] in his complaint; however they denied that they had ill-treated the latter. A number of other acts were also undertaken; however they did not yield sufficient information to justify the suspicion that a criminal offence had been committed ...”
31.  On 31 March 2008 the Warsaw-Mokotów District Junior Prosecutor confirmed the decision to discontinue the investigation.
32.  The applicant appealed to the District Court. He claimed that the prosecutor had disregarded evidence indicating that he had been ill-treated, namely the conclusions of the inquiry carried out by the Governor of the Remand Centre, statements of the direct witness, A.S., and his injuries. He also pointed out that the prosecutor had failed to examine evidence recorded by CCTV. In a supplement to his appeal, the applicant asserted that the reason for his abuse was the fact that he had been charged with a sexual offence involving a minor. He also denied that he had made indecent proposals to T.G.
33.  On 22 October 2008 the Warsaw-Mokotów District Court upheld the decision to discontinue the investigation. It confirmed the prosecutor’s finding that there had been insufficient evidence warranting the suspicion that an offence under Article 247 § 1 of the CC had been committed. Regardless of the reasons for the discontinuation, the court noted that the alleged acts could not be classified as ill-treatment within the meaning of Article 247 § 1 of the CC since this provision required a series of repeated acts which caused significant physical pain or moral suffering to the victim.
34.  The court found that the alleged treatment between 7 and 10 September 2007 had neither been lengthy nor continuous. Moreover, no serious injuries had been detected except for bruising falling under Article 157 § 2 of the CC, and the actions of the perpetrators had been limited to acts degrading the applicant. Those acts fell within the scope of privately‑prosecutable offences specified in Article 217 § 1 of the CC (breach of personal inviolability) or 157 § 2 of the CC (causing light bodily injuries) but could not be classified as ill-treatment. Lastly, the court noted that the inmates had been disciplined and that the applicant could file a private bill of indictment against them. The decision was served on the applicant’s lawyer on 31 October 2008.
35.  In January 2009 the applicant filed a criminal complaint, alleging that the penitentiary officials had committed an offence of neglecting their duties under Article 231 of the Criminal Code. On 29 January 2009 the applicant was interviewed by the Warsaw-Mokotów District Prosecutor. On the same day the prosecutor refused to open an investigation in the case.
36.  Following the notification of the application to the respondent Government, on 3 October 2011 the Warsaw-Mokotów District Prosecutor resumed the criminal investigation. The prosecutor had also regard to the findings made in the civil proceedings instituted by the applicant against the State Treasury and the perpetrators of the abuse (see paragraphs 45-48 below).
37.  On 6 April 2012 the prosecutor charged P.O. and T.G. with the commission of an offence under Article 247 § 1 of the Criminal Code in that they had physically and psychologically ill-treated the applicant between 7 and 10 September 2007.
38.  On 29 June 2012 the District Prosecutor discontinued the investigation against the perpetrators of the alleged abuse on the ground of ne bis in idem, i.e. that criminal proceedings in respect of the same acts against the same persons had been finally terminated (Article 17 § 1 (7) of the Code of Criminal Procedure). He referred to the decision of the Warsaw-Mokotów District Court of 4 November 2010 which finally terminated the proceedings against P.O. and T.G. initiated by the applicant’s private bill of indictment (see paragraph 43 below).
39.  The prosecutor further found that no criminal offence had been committed by the employees of the detention centre in respect of their alleged negligence in supervising the inmates of the impugned cell. He noted that the cell had been monitored by the CCTV but no recordings had been made. Furthermore, the impugned ill-treatment consisted of a few individual acts that took place over the period of less than four days. The prosecutor noted that the applicant informed his warden about the abuse only on the fourth day (10 September 2007). Immediately after that he was transferred to another cell and provided with medical care. He concluded that at the material time the employees of the remand centre had no grounds to assume that the applicant had been subjected to physical or psychological violence because neither the applicant nor other inmates had reported such a fact to them. The prosecutor accordingly discontinued the investigation in this part as well. The applicant’s lawyer appealed.
40.  On 17 January 2013 the Warsaw-Mokotów District Court upheld the prosecutor’s decision. No further appeal lay against that decision.
41.  On 12 January 2009 the applicant filed a private bill of indictment against P.O. and T.G. with the Warsaw-Mokotów District Court. He alleged that they had physically and psychologically ill-treated him between 7 and 10 September 2007. The applicant accused them of having breached his personal inviolability under Article 217 § 1 of the Criminal Code and of having caused him light bodily injuries under Article 157 § 2 of the Criminal Code. The court appointed a legal-aid lawyer for the applicant.
42.  On 24 April 2009 the Warsaw-Mokotów District Court discontinued the proceedings against P.O. and T.G. on the ground of ne bis in idem (Article 17 § 1 (7) of the Code of Criminal Procedure). It held that a different legal classification of the same acts adopted by the prosecutor or by a private prosecutor had been irrelevant in the case of discontinuation based on the lack of sufficient evidence of a criminal offence. This decision was quashed on appeal. In two subsequent decisions, the Warsaw-Mokotów District Court discontinued the private prosecution proceedings on the ground of the expiry of the limitation period and on the ground of ne bis in idem respectively. These two decisions were quashed on appeal.
43.  In the final and fourth decision of 4 November 2010 the Warsaw‑Mokotów District Court discontinued the proceedings on the basis of the expiry of the limitation period (Article 17 § 1 (6) of the Code of Criminal Procedure). On 22 February 2011 the Warsaw Regional Court upheld the District Court’s decision to discontinue the proceedings on that ground.
44.  In relation to the alleged ill-treatment the applicant sued the State Treasury (the relevant detention centre) and the two alleged perpetrators.
45.  In May 2009 the applicant brought a civil action against the State Treasury for infringement of his personal rights (health, privacy, inviolability and dignity) under Articles 24 and 448 of the Civil Code. He sought, inter alia, 80,000 PLN (20,000 EUR) in compensation for the infringement, claiming that the defendant had failed to ensure his safety in detention.
46.  The case was heard by the Warsaw Regional Court which established the following facts. The applicant was remanded in custody on 9 January 2007. In August 2007 he was admitted to the Warsaw‑Mokotów Detention Centre in order to undergo a psychiatric examination (obserwacja psychiatryczna). After a certain delay, the applicant was placed in a 9‑person cell in the psychiatric wing of the Remand Centre. It was so‑called “observation cell” for detainees who just arrived in the psychiatric wing and which remained under particular supervision. The cell was located opposite the nurses’ room and was equipped with a CCTV camera which enabled the warden to monitor the situation in the cell. The situation in the cell was normal until the arrival of inmate P.O. From this time, P.O. together with inmate T.G. started abusing the applicant. They poured cold water over him, hit him with a brush stick, and struck him in the face with a mop causing bruises, haematomas and abrasions. P.O. and T.G. told the applicant that a person like him had no rights and ordered him to clean the cell, sit in the corner and follow their orders. They also poured water on the applicant’s bed, his blanket and tattooed a dot on his left arm. Furthermore, P.O. and T.G. held the applicant’s arms and using the mental disability of another inmate (J.C.) persuaded the latter to show his penis just in front of the applicant’s face and tried to force the applicant to have oral sex. These events began on Friday 7 September 2007 and lasted until Monday 10 September 2007. In the course of check-ups carried during this period of time the applicant requested both a doctor on duty and a warden on duty to speak to them urgently and in private. The doctor on duty refused to speak to the applicant and advised him to see his doctor on Monday. The warden also refused to speak to the applicant. On Monday morning another inmate from the cell, A.S. reported to the doctor the events of the last weekend. The applicant was immediately called to the doctor and recounted him the events. The applicant was then quickly moved to another 3-person cell which was occupied by two detainees charged with offences similar to those of the applicant’s.
47.  On 3 March 2010 the Warsaw Regional Court gave judgment. The court held that the personal rights of the applicant had been infringed. The State Treasury did not refute this fact but argued that the internal inquiry had not showed any negligence on the part of the prison guards or medical personnel and that the applicant had allegedly not immediately reported the events. The court held that every person detained in prison or remand centre should be treated in a manner respecting his or her dignity. However, in the applicant’s case, his dignity was violated by allowing his inmates to subject him to degrading treatment over the period of three days while the wardens failed to react to these events. The events occurred notwithstanding the fact that the applicant had been placed in an “observation cell” which was designed to monitor and react to inappropriate behaviour of inmates. In these circumstances, the State Treasury was liable for the infringement of the applicant’s personal rights resulting from the negligence of the employees of the remand centre since despite the CCTV monitoring of the cell, the applicant’s requests for a private conversation, his wet bed and his external injuries none of the wardens or members of the medical personnel had reacted. The court found unproven the State Treasury’s assertion that the applicant had not informed the personnel about his abuse. The State Treasury was under a duty to ensure the applicant’s safety in the cell, in particular as it disposed of the relevant instruments to this effect such as the CCTV monitoring.
48.  With regard to the applicant’s claim for non-pecuniary damages, the court considered it excessive and disproportionate to the degree of the infringement of his personal rights. It noted that the award of non-pecuniary damage should on one hand constitute a significant hardship for a person responsible for the infringement and afford satisfaction to the claimant, but on the other hand it could not lead to a significant enrichment of the claimant. In the court’s view, the award of the full amount sought by the applicant would have led to his significant enrichment given his personal and professional achievements so far. The court awarded the applicant 3,000 PLN (EUR 750) which it considered adequate, having regard, inter alia, to the degree of the harm, the duration of the ill-treatment, the applicant’s personal circumstances etc. It noted that the applicant had claimed to have suffered a psychological harm but did not substantiate this claim.
49.  The applicant’s lawyer appealed, seeking higher award. He argued that PLN 3,000 was not a significant amount for the defendant. On 12 December 2010 the Warsaw Court of Appeal upheld the first‑instance judgment. No further appeal lay against the judgment.
50.  In the civil proceedings against the first of the alleged abusers (T.G.) the parties settled the case. Under the terms of the settlement T.G. agreed to pay 1,250 PLN (about 300 EUR) to the applicant.
51.  In the civil case against the second of the alleged abusers (P.O.) the courts found for the applicant. On 17 July 2012 the Warsaw-Mokotów District Court held the P.O. had infringed the personal rights of the applicant (his dignity, health and personal inviolability) and awarded him 2,500 PLN in compensation (EUR 600). On 20 March 2013 the Warsaw Court of Appeal upheld this judgment which subsequently became final.
52.  On 8 January 2007 the applicant was placed in the Warsaw‑Białołęka Detention Centre. On 24 August 2007 he was admitted to the Warsaw‑Mokotów Detention Centre in order to undergo a psychiatric examination. On 24 October 2007 he returned to the Warsaw-Białołęka Detention Centre. Subsequently, on 21 November 2007 he was transferred to the Warsaw-Służewiec Detention Centre and on 1 October 2008 he returned to the Warsaw-Białołęka Detention Centre.
53.  In his appeal of 3 December 2007 against a prolongation of the applicant’s detention, his lawyer informed the courts that the applicant had been assaulted by a prison guard in the Warsaw-Białołęka Remand Centre on 12 August 2007. On 28 December 2007 the Warsaw District Court requested the prosecution service to provide information about the follow‑up to the above complaint. The applicant submitted no further information in this respect.
54.  On 25 February 2008 the Warsaw District Court refused to lift the applicant’s detention on remand. It noted that in light of the information obtained from the Warsaw-Służewiec Remand Centre the applicant’s continued detention did not entail a risk to his life or health.
55.  On 14 May 2008 the Warsaw District Court requested the Governor of the Warsaw-Służewiec Detention Centre to comment on the applicant’s complaints concerning psychological and physical ill-treatment by his fellow inmates and the prison staff, unfair imposition of disciplinary penalties, including placement in solitary confinement, refusal to allow him to consult a psychologist, and the lack of sufficient food and hygiene products. The court also requested the Governor to provide information on whether the applicant had been placed in a cell with smokers.
56.  On 6 June 2008 the Governor replied. He stated that the applicant had not been subjected to ill-treatment and that the administration of the Remand Centre had made the necessary efforts to ensure his safety. Between 22 February and 28 May 2008 the applicant had been disciplined for various breaches of the prison regulations, inter alia, refusal to comply with orders or interference with the execution of orders, refusal to eat meals, aggressive behaviour and possession of tablets. The applicant had numerous consultations with a prison psychologist and a psychiatrist. He received three meals per day in accordance with the relevant regulations as well as necessary hygiene products. The applicant was placed in a non-smoking cell; however in the past he had provided contradictory information as to whether he minded being placed in a smoking cell.
57.  On 7 April 2008 the Warsaw District Court extended the applicant’s detention until 4 June 2008. Having regard to the information obtained from the Warsaw-Służewiec Remand Centre, the court found that that establishment could ensure the applicant’s safety. The court made a similar finding in its decisions of 10 July and 8 August 2008.
58.  In its decision of 2 July 2008 the Warsaw Regional Court dismissed as unfounded the applicant’s allegations in respect of a risk of ill-treatment from other inmates in the Warsaw-Służewiec Remand Centre. In its decision of 12 August 2008 the Regional Court noted that following reported assaults on the applicant by other prisoners the administration of the remand centre had placed him in a single cell in order to ensure his safety.
59.  On 10 July 2008 the Warsaw District Court refused the applicant’s request to release him in connection with his grandfather’s death. On 12 August 2008 the Warsaw Regional Court upheld that decision.
60.  On an unspecified date the applicant complained to the Warsaw District Court that his garden house had been burgled in December 2008. On 15 January 2009 the court requested the Wawer District Police to verify the applicant’s information.
61.  The Governor of the Warsaw-Białołęka Remand Centre in his report of February 2009 concerning the applicant stated that inmates housed with the applicant had to be properly selected in view of the nature of the applicant’s offence.
62.  On 26 February 2009 the Warsaw District Court refused to release the applicant in order to take care of his ill grandmother. On 11 March 2009 the Warsaw Regional Court upheld that decision.
63.  In May 2009 the applicant complained about the conditions at the Warsaw-Białołęka Detention Centre, including the lack of education and sports activities, no possibility to attend religious services, lack of hygiene products and hot water in the cell, power cuts and shared showers. On 25 May 2009 the Governor of the Detention Centre informed the Warsaw-Praga Regional Court that the complaints were ill-founded. The applicant had regular access to various activities and religious services. The penitentiary establishments were not required to provide hot water in cells. Power cuts had been imposed by the Inspectorate of the Prison Service in order to make savings.
64.  In reply to his other four complaints, the Governor informed the applicant that the living standards in his cell were adequate and in accordance with the relevant regulations. As to his placement in a cell with smokers, the applicant himself had been inconsistent as to whether he preferred a smoking or a non-smoking cell. As regards the strip search of the applicant and his fellow inmates on 27 April 2009, the Governor informed the applicant that it had been carried out in accordance with the law and with due respect to the prisoners’ dignity. On 21 July 2009 the Warsaw Regional Inspectorate upheld the Governor’s findings.
65.  On an unspecified date the applicant requested the court to grant him leave from prison in order to take care of his ill grandmother, who was his only relative. He also invoked the need to seek treatment for his epilepsy. On 14 August 2009 the Warsaw-Praga Regional Court, having regard to a report of the court officer, refused his request. It found that the applicant’s grandmother had been under the constant care of doctors, had access to social services and the applicant’s assistance had not been necessary. Further, the court found that the applicant’s illness could be treated in prison. On 6 October 2009 the Warsaw Court of Appeal upheld that decision.
66.  On 21 December 2009 the applicant complained to the Governor of the Warsaw-Białołęka Detention Centre about, inter alia, the quality of medical care provided in prison. On 21 January 2010 the Governor dismissed his complaints. He noted that the applicant had been regularly seen by doctors. At his request he had been tested for HIV. The applicant was treated for epilepsy and his condition was stable. He had had an electroencephalography in February 2009 and in view of his stable condition there was no need for another similar examination.